The Gnome of Picta
by Oakleaf girl
Summary: She always knew she loved him, her little gnome from Picta. Follow Alyss and Will's journey through the perils Ward School, home work and love. With Horace Jenny and George by their side what could go wrong? Note: This is a slow building romance. Some sappy feelings ahead but mostly humour. Sit back and enjoy the show.
1. Prologue

Prologue

On the bitter bleak winters when the snow would drown the surrounding scenery in white, Castle Redmont stood bold and proud, covered in remnants of the falling snow which long ago stopped. The remaining villagers in the countryside would gaze at the fortifications of the warm solid building enviously before trudging back in the biting cold towards their ramshackle homes. I would watch them from my window with a mixed sense of sympathy and gratitude. Glad that I was protected from the relentless snow threatening to send those outside to oblivion.

Smiling to myself I let the burning fire in the grate surround me in a cloak of warmth and happy memories. Call me heartless but it was the best feeling when wrapped in toasty warmth while watching those outside suffer against the cold I didn't have to face.

"Alyss, I've got our warm milk ready what are you doing? I've been calling you for ages." Will pushed the door of the girl's dormitory ajar covering his eyes with his fingers embarrassed, as if he were trespassing the laws of conduct. I turned around and smiled at his awkward behaviour.

Will. Over the last seven years we have come to know each other I have never failed to smile at his presence. Ever since my mother died of child birth I was sent here to the Ward to be cared for by the surrounding maids, usually female. Apparently as the tale goes, not that I would know I was still a baby, from all the maid's accounts I was a feisty little girl. Never stopped crying and was as stubborn as a mule. Then around two days later, Will arrived at the doorstep in a bundle of cloths with a note attached to his cradle. The servants took him in knowing that they could not turn their backs on an innocent homeless child. From the maid's anecdote, I was crying again, goodness knows what for, when they set Will down next to me and he smiled and gurgled in a way that only babies do. Immediately I stopped howling and looked at him with an expression of interest and curiosity. Ever since then we had been inseparable. Mary loved to tell a good anecdote, usually exaggerating the plot until it came to unrealistic measures. Though this one I could tell wasn't forged up. I knew this because Will still had the same effect on me, whether I was seven or a baby he still managed to calm me down. Though of course as I grew up he didn't really need to, as ever the diplomat I am, I managed to hide my emotions quite well.

"You can come in you know and you don't have to cover your eyes I'm the only girl here." It was true. The only children in the ward were Will and I. Sometimes the fact was a little depressing but generally it didn't matter.

"You might have been changing." Will muttered awkwardly. He shuffled his feet on the stone floor and looked down, his whole face tinted red. I laughed gently.

"Will if I was changing I would have told not to come in wouldn't I?" I restrained myself from laughing again at his solemn little nod and I made my way towards him dragging him down the narrow steps out of my dormitory. He didn't seem to mind. It was always that way between us two. We knew each other so well we never had to doubt one another. Will looked up at me now. I was always extremely tall for a seven year old girl but I never let that bother me. He was always extremely short for a seven year old boy and he never really cared. It was one of the qualities I liked most about him. The mischievous gleam in his eye made me wary. He only had that look when he was thinking of something either incredibly immature or incredibly stupid.

"Race you to the dining table." He zoomed off, reminding me of the tiny gnomes on the border of Picta that were often told of in the Ward lantern shows.

"Will!" I called after him. He laughed, carefree and happy and I had to resist the urge to smile again. Running after him I already knew he would win, mainly due to the fact that he had an enormous head start but even then, he was always a very fast runner. Panting and out of breath I reached the table minutes after he did. He was already settled in a chair with Mary fussing over him about his untidy appearance.

"Oh my look at the state of you! Covered in mud, why are you bleeding? And what happened to your hair? Why is it so messy? I can't even put a comb through it!" She cried. Every mothers nightmare, the tangle of knotted hair and the ever present dirt on his clothes. Will was struggling to push her off him so he could drink his milk. I sat down at the table and joined him, my cup slightly colder than his. He finished drinking within seconds, holding his cup up, proud and confident with a milk moustache above his lip.

"Finished." He cried. Looking at me with a smug look on his chubby face. I burst out laughing at his ridiculous expression as I heard Mary exclaiming in shock.

"Will come here let me wipe that off your face." She retrieved her special napkin, dedicated to Will and his 'food accidents' and began to spit on the cloth and dab his face. Before she could get close enough though he scuttled away from her.

"You are not touching me with that!" He cried looking at the napkin with disgust.

"Why ever not?" Mary stood with her hands on her hips, a stern expression on her face.

"You spat on it!" Will exclaimed, looking at her as if the answer was obvious.

"So?" Will looked at her as if she had lost her senses and I smiled quietly to myself. Unfortunately this was noticed by Will who took my laughter the wrong way.

"It's disgusting and unhygienic why do you always do that to me why don't you ever do it to Alyss." He said dragging me into the conversation. I gave him a short glare and he answered it by sticking out his tongue.

"I don't have to do it to Alyss because she never spills food on herself unlike you." Mary now advanced upon Will who was moaning and squirming trying to wriggle his way free. I watched with amusement and after some extremely high pitched squeals from Will and a lot of scolding from Mary, she managed to clean his face. They both looked at each other with mock disgust and pretended to dislike one another, the way they usually did, however everyone knew they were only pretending. Yes they were special that way.

"Come on off to bed both of you." Mary ushered us out of the kitchen door and called after me as I climbed up the stairs. "Oh Alyss I'll drop in on you to brush your hair before you go to bed." I smiled in assent and continued up. Will snorted.

"What?" I asked jogging him with my elbow.

"Mary has to brush your hair for you." Will taunted laughing at me.

"Well just because you never brush _your_ hair." He scowled at my comment.

"I don't need to brush my hair, I look adorable the way I am now." He stated in a matter of fact manner. I gave him a sidelong glance that told him I wasn't impressed.

"Yes, if you call looking like a drowned cat adorable." I deadpanned my face and he looked offended for a moment before laughing it off.

"Well whatever, you're probably just jealous." He huffed, and with that happy note he stalked off to his bedroom. I shook my head and entered mine.

* * *

"Alyss are you ready for bed?" Mary's head popped in, and seeing me in my nightgown she smiled in a motherly fashion.

"Yes." I said showing off my newly grown adult teeth. Only two of my tiny teeth had fallen out but it was still one up than Will.

"Come here then, let me brush your hair." She walked over behind me while I sat on the wooden stool placed in the middle of the room. It was hard being a girl with long hair because there was never anything to tie it up with which resulted in more or less very tangled hair. Mary insisted that she cut it to a boys length but I protested adamantly and therefore we had both come to the conclusion of her brushing my hair every night to ensure no knots. I scowled as she ruthlessly pulled the comb through my hair.

"Do you really have to do it that roughly?" I asked through gritted teeth after the fifth time she nearly pulled my hair out of my roots. She laughed gently which didn't help my current mood.

"Sorry dear you're the one who asked for long hair, besides how are you going to find a groom if your hair looks like a rats nest?" She asked.

"You're describing Will's hair not mine" I answered cheekily while she laughed. I continued "Besides I don't need to find a groom I have Will don't I?"

"You would marry Will?" Mary asked, slightly shocked.

"Of course, if I couldn't find anyone else." I said. She laughed again and muttered something about young love. I frowned in confusion. Young love? I don't love Will do I? Well maybe I do but not in that way with the whole husband and wife thing? I shook my head confused by the entire matter. The decision was set. I mean Will and I already did things a married couple would do. We lived together, we played together, and we ate together. What more did a couple do?

"Well then that's set you're probably going to marry Will." Mary said fondly, shaking her head at my antics. I slid under my covers as she tucked me in and bade me goodnight. Snuggling in deeper to my blanket I pondered about the possibility of Will and I getting married. Surprisingly I didn't seem to mind. Not in the slightest.

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**Hey guys so if you guys have read my previous stories you will see that one of them has a Will and Evanlyn ship but personally I have always been a Will and Alyss shipper. Any ways just saying if you read this story in the hope of some Will and Evanlyn chemistry you are sadly mistaken. Will and Alyss are just as cute though. Irregular updates will be guaranteed so don't say I didn't warn you.**

**Oakleaf Girl **


	2. Chapter 1

A pleasant suprise

_Will P.O.V_

_3 years later_

"Will get down from there you'll hurt yourself." I laughed at her concern. I swarmed up the huge oak tree that dominated the central courtyard where we usually played after lessons were over. Alyss was below looking up at me with a relaxed expression for a ten year old, but this was Alyss. I could read every expression on her face, every glint in her eyes. We grew up together it would be ridiculous if I couldn't tell what she was feeling. Yet somehow she managed to compose herself in a way that made me doubt what she was thinking about, I could never tell what was going on in her mind even if I could from her facial expressions.

"No you come up" I said, sitting on one of the lower branches so I could talk to her freely. To my great amusement for once_ she_ had to look up at _me_. I relished the feeling of being so tall. It never mattered to me before, but I was a small kid then, no older than the age of seven. Now that I was a lot older it had become a source of great embarrassment.

"I am _not _coming up." Alyss huffed, blowing a bit of hair from her face. I laughed again at her stubbornness and immediately wished I hadn't. Alyss had very powerful grey eyes; her glaring was not something I wanted to be on the receiving end of. Unfortunately that's exactly where I was.

"Oh come on it's not that scary honestly I can help you if you want." I made a consoling gesture at her with my arms, which apparently did not help. She walked gracefully to the stone benches underneath the oak where she was covered by the shade.

"Its fine you can stay up there if you want, I will stay here." She crossed one leg over the other in a very mature manner I certainly wouldn't have been able to have done and started reading her scrolls.

I sighed at her then decided to climb up higher in my tree to get a better vantage point. It was always this way. If I wanted to climb a tree, which I always did after lessons were over she would grab some of her scrolls and continue on with her home work that she had already started in class. Yes that's right. Not only would she have finished the class work in class but she also managed to make a strong start on the homework given as well. I always found it a bit pointless. What was the point in doing home work during the lessons if it was set to be done at home? Aside from that I never really managed to finish my school work on time in the first place let alone get started on homework. It's not that I'm stupid, I do understand what the teacher means when they explain different aspects of the subject. I just don't really care. I try not to tell Alyss though. She loves listening to the droning of our boring teacher. To her it's one of the most fascinating things in the world. Well that and how women are still alive after giving birth.

Anyways I was trying to pinpoint a location where I could scan my fellow class mates. We had around a hundred in our class what with it being the only available school for miles and I was trying to see where they were while they were walking home. Alyss and I were the only Ward children in the class and it was obvious no one was very happy about it. The teachers always found ways to punish me if they could, which needless to say was a lot of times whereas Alyss was lucky. They would completely ignore her which wasn't fair. I wish I was ignored in school. If the teachers didn't pick on us the students did, the girls would taunt Alyss for being too tall and the boys would bully me for being too short. There was no winning with those idiotic children. In the end we had to give each other company, which I didn't mind since hanging out with Alyss was fun, but still I craved for some friends outside the Ward. Alyss was the only person I had.

I gathered my small selection of pebbles from earlier today and spread them out on my lap. An assortment of sizes greeted me. A big palm sized rock was one of them. I pondered for a moment wondering who I should throw them at, now don't get me wrong I know hurting people is bad but they hurt us first so this is only getting even. Clutching the rock I carefully swivelled side ways so that my legs were dangling either side of the firm branch, swinging my arm carefully and squinting my eyes with concentration I aimed at the pinprick figure of Sarah. Her brown hair swished from side to side and a smile was always plastered on to her sweet face. The little git. She was Alyss' worst tormentor, never failing to go a day without insulting her at least five times. Sometimes consecutively one after the other. Alyss would always prevent me from ripping her head off her shoulders, saying something about patience and decency. I would always reply by saying what a load of bull.

Scowling at her general direction I threw the stone as far and as hard as I could at her figure. Call it beginners luck but the stone hit the target straight away. She screamed in sheer terror and I burst out laughing at her hilarious expression. The pebble wasn't hit at her that hard and I aimed it for her stomach so that she was forced to bend over in a way that made her look constipated. I almost fell off the tree from how much I was shaking. Alyss upon hearing my fits of laughter looked up at me quizzically as if checking my mental sanity. I shook my head to her still unable to speak and sidled back down the tree to sit next to her.

Alyss was generally a very patient girl but that didn't mean she wasn't curious. Immediately unable to stand the suspense of not telling her, I recalled how Sarah looked in that awkward position and how the stone hit her exactly where intended. I expected a sudden lecture from her telling me how wrong it was to hurt a girl and how she didn't deserve it. Instead she said "good" in a very gruff manner. Turning towards me she said "why did you hit her?"

"What do you mean why? She was mean to you your entire life and I think today was the worst she'd ever been to you." We both shuddered at the sight of her endless teasing earlier that day and how she dumped a whole flagon of freezing water over Alyss' dress. I had never been more impressed with Alyss before today. She stood there serenely, eyeing Sarah with distaste and a look that clearly emphasised the fact that Sarah had to pour a flagon to get to her showed how pathetic she was. It was obvious from her facial expression and in the end she did the right thing by not retaliating. The teacher having seen the incident could not side with Sarah in any way and was forced to punish her.

Alyss visibly sighed in relief. "You still didn't do the right thing you know."

"But you just said good when I told you what I did." I exclaimed, surprised at her. One minute she was approving the next she was berating me. I had no idea what went through this girl's head.

"Yes but I never said my response was right either." She replied.

"What? Now you're confusing me." I said. What was she going on about?

"Look just because I said it was good that you hit her doesn't mean it was the right thing to do." Alyss explained to me calmly. I liked that about her. If I didn't understand something she wouldn't berate me or taunt me, nor would she explain it to me in a patronising manner. She would sit there calmly and logically explain what I had done wrong and then the solution to the problem.

"Who cares if it was right or wrong she deserved it." I said vehemently, daring the girl beside me to contradict me. Wisely she said nothing. She turned away slightly so she could scribble some more notes on to her parchments. What I didn't see though, was the smile threatening to burst through her calm demeanour.

"Will, Alyss, come over here both of you there's some special news for you." Hearing our names we looked up at the source of noise and saw Mary standing with her hands on her hips staring at us from the upstairs shutter. Alyss and I stared at each other, simultaneously deciding we didn't want to be on the other end of Mary's wrath, we ran towards the Ward sectors where we knew Mary to be.

Panting and slightly out of breath I stopped near a chair in the kitchen and had to struggle to stop exclaiming in surprise. Alyss arrived a few seconds behind me and I could tell she was feeling the same as I was, though she was much better at hiding her emotions.

"You two this is a new child in the Ward, her name is Jenny." Behind Mary was a little girl, slightly taller than me who was red eyed and scared. She stared at us with a stricken expression on her face. I didn't know who she was but one thing was certain. The Ward would never be the same again.

* * *

**Hey guys. In case the less nimble eyed among you have not noticed, I changed the POV. I think I will change the POV for every chapter alternating between just Will and Alyss. Also they are both now 10 years old in this chapter as in the first one they were 7. Just clearing these things up for you so you find reading it easier. As always please give this chapter a load of reviews as an indication of whether I should continue or not. I have GCSE's this year for those who live in the suckish country of the United Kingdom they will understand my pain. This means updates will most probably be irregular sometimes I will do two chapters very close to one another other times there may be breaks for up to weeks. I just don't have the time to tell exactly when I'm going to do what. Sorry for ranting at you guys I just hope you understand. Anyways I do have big plans for this story even though the idea came to me while I was daydreaming! Again review to tell me what you thought of it.**

**Oakleaf Girl.**


	3. Chapter 2

New Family

_Alyss P.O.V_

Will was still staring at the new girl named Jenny with his mouth wide open. I felt pity swell up inside me at the sight of the poor girl. It was clearly obvious that she was not dealing with her problems very well. My mind grasped on the tiny details such as how Jenny's hair was sticking up at the end, the splash of cooking oil spilt on the stone tiles next to Will, the setting sun illuminating us in orange light.

"Alright, make sure you two are nice to her and show her around, I have to check on Susanne and make sure she has not burned the evening meal." Mary gave Will a reproving look upon seeing his mouth hung wide open, but said nothing of it. Slowly the sound of her footsteps dimmed as she went down the hall.

Silence hung like a misty frame over us, threatening to choke us with its intensity. I wished Will would close his mouth; his gawping was scaring Jenny even more than she needed to be. However I couldn't exactly be discreet in elbowing a boy in the ribcage so I ignored him for now. Taking a step foreword I offered the branch of friendship by extending my hand in the universal form of greeting.

"Hello my name is Alyss and this is Will, we're Ward children too and we can show you around and help you settle in if you like." I looked over at Will who thankfully had shut his mouth by now and gestured to him with my eyes to say something. He took a step foreword.

"Oh, er, yes." He said uncertainly. I suppressed a sigh. Boys could be so hopeless sometimes. I looked back at Jenny who was eying the both of us with a dulled sense of interest, as if any other time and any other circumstance she would have found us both amusing. Her eyes were glazed over with tears. Hesitantly she reached out her small chubby hand to meet mine and we shook hands. It was over in a flash and she retracted her hand in a matter of milliseconds but that was enough for me. Looking into her eyes I could sense her need for a distraction. Fortunately for the both of us it came pretty soon. Unfortunately for Will, he chose that moment to step away, his foot sliding on the patch of cooking oil still on the floor. For seconds his arms made a frantic windmill gesture before landing spectacularly on his bum his face full of shock.

The sight of his face coupled with the awkward position he was sat in all served to make me burst out laughing. Will immediately got up and looked down at the floor as if wondering what on earth there was, then smiled sheepishly at us before going to get the dirty cloth and wipe the mess off the floor. As he bent down and began cleaning the floor the wet patches on his breeches covering his bum I continued laughing harder. He straightened up quickly and looked at me with surprise at my extra burst of laughter.

"Why are you laughing now? What happened?" Will asked grumpily. I shook my head and pointed to his breeches wordlessly. Unable to see behind him he tried turning around on the spot to see his bum. It only made me laugh harder.

"No really it's okay." Jenny put her hands on Will's shoulders to make him stop spinning. She was biting her lip in a way that made me think she was trying not to laugh so that she didn't offend him. Despite her efforts a small giggle escaped her and Will looked at her with marvel.

"Come on Jenny let me show you where the girls quarter is, Will you keep cleaning." I added after I saw Will make his way to join us.

"Why I can do it later." He whined.

"Well you could unless you want to slip on it again the next time we come here, and we can't have that now can we?" I smiled at his annoyed expression, knowing I had one that verbal argument. He grumbled under his breath and bent down again to clean the floor while I led Jenny away from the kitchens and up to the dormitory.

"Sorry about Will he can get a little crazy." I told her. She nodded slightly and continued up the stairs.

"I think he's quite nice." Jenny said shyly. I looked at her and smiled.

"Yes he's really nice just a bit of a fool sometimes." I laughed slightly and saw a smile appear on Jenny's face at my comment. It felt nice to be able to make someone smile. "This is the dormitory we sleep in, there are loads of beds here so you do not have to share with me don't worry, and the boy's dormitories are opposite us, not that you would ever go in there." I added hastily managing to hide my blush. She simply nodded at the sight in front of her and gazed around the room. Taking the initiative I asked her whether she wanted me to give her some time alone. She nodded gratefully and I exited our dorm to make my down into the kitchen.

I noticed Will washing the dish rag under the water pump outside and decided to help him pump the water. It was a two man job and usually anything that needed washing we did together. We were a team after all. A smile played on my face at the sight of him struggling and I decided not to spare him any longer, he had already humiliated himself in front of Jenny enough.

"Hey want some help?" I asked politely. He nodded gratefully and looked around.

"Where's Jenny?" He asked curiously. He bent down and squeezed the cloth while I pushed the pump.

"She needed some time alone."

"Why?" He asked obtusely.

"Will! Her parents just died and she was admitted to the Ward why do you think she would need time alone?" He was generally very observant but when it came to emotions he could be very dense.

"Oh." He said quietly.

"Yes Oh." I smirked at him as he continued rinsing the cloth.

"Okay I think the cloth is clean now." I immediately stopped the pump and he squeezed it one more time before we both headed towards the dim light of the Ward kitchens.

"You know I feel sorry for her." I said still contemplating Jenny's situation. Will looked at the girls dormitories with a wistful expression on his face. Such a serious expression looked weird on his youthful face. It juxtaposed with his unruly brown hair and his cheeky smile.

"Yeah. Me too." He said sadly. He understood what I meant. No matter how lonely the both of us got sometimes we never really wanted another companion in the Ward because that would mean their parents would have had to die. We would never wish that upon any child.

"I think it is worse for her I mean she knew her parents, and she spent a lot of time with them at least with you and I we never really knew our parents so we didn't feel like we lost anything." I sighed.

"Yes but at least you knew something about your parents and she knows something about hers, I know nothing about mine." Will argued. He kicked a clump of mud with his tiny boots and muttered. "Not even my last name." I stayed silent. I knew this was a sensitive topic for him and decided not to say anything. I sensed comforting him now would only make him feel worse.

We entered the building together to find Mary setting the table with plates of hot steaming roast potato, piles of watery greens and succulent meat. I berated myself silently for not helping her sooner and hurried over to help Mary set the cutlery. I soon realised however that I didn't need to. Jenny was already setting the last knife and fork down and smiled slightly when she saw me. I smiled back at her warmly.

"Thanks for doing my job for me." I told her as Will and I joined the table sitting down opposite her. Jenny smiled shyly again and started eating her food.

"Of course she had to do your job for you, you were too busy playing around outside." Mary chided.

"I was not; Will needed some help with pushing the water pump to clean the dirty cloth." Will glared at me silently as I continued cutting up my meat.

"Why did he have to clean the dirty cloth, it is called a dirty cloth for a reason." Mary asked. Jenny snorted a little when hearing the comment but otherwise remained silent.

"You know I am still in the room Mary you can ask me yourself." Will grumbled to her. Mary swivelled round to face him.

"Alright then why did you have to clean the dirty cloth it is called a dirty cloth for a reason." She repeated. I suppressed my smile quite well though Jenny was finding it harder than I was, her cheeks rosy red with curbed amusement. Will spluttered slightly then slumped his shoulders and continued in defeat.

"I had to wipe cooking oil off the floor because I slipped on it." He muttered barely audible.

"I'm sorry Will I can't hear you what did you say?" Mary asked. She was lying and I knew she was, she heard what he said she only wanted him to repeat it again so he could relive the embarrassment. I just managed to control myself from laughing and Jenny was beaming at Mary. I had a feeling those two would get along very well. Will repeated the same line but louder this time and it was Mary's turn to hold back her smile. Will looked at all three of us before muttering.

"Oh alright laugh already I can tell you want to." He shoved some vegetables down his mouth while the three of us burst into laughter once more.

"Did he have wet patches?" Mary asked still chortling.

"On his bum." Jenny said laughing. Will glared slightly at her then decided to join in with the laughter as Mary hooted with glee. After a couple of minutes we managed to settle down and continue eating our food.

"Looks like you are settling in well my dear." Mary stroked Jenny's hair fondly and I glanced up quickly to see Jenny's expression. What surprised me was the small smile widening across her face.

"Yes I think I have." She said softly. And for once, looking at Jenny and Will beside me I finally knew what it felt like to have a family.

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**Hey guys sorry for the late update hope you liked this chapter it all leads somewhere within this story so don't worry. I felt like I had to make Jenny feel at home and welcome before we proceeded with the rest of this journey. I believe this chapter is what some people call a filler but I like fillers so I don't care anyways. Without fillers the story would not flow very well. Any who if you liked this chapter please do review and let me know. Also if you have any big dreams for this story or anything you would like to happen to any of the characters in this story also review that in as well. I know what it's like to have an author write an awesome story that makes you want to create different scenarios in your head. At least that's how I feel. I hope I'm not being weird! **

**So...yeah...review this chapter my gooslings and you may be provided with another one pretty soon :D**

**Oakleaf Girl. **


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